Xbox One finishes 2014 on top as sales of all consoles soar

The PS4 might have outsold the Xbox One early on, but Microsoft’s console had a storming finish to the year, according to new figures.

It was the best-selling console in the US in both November and December, Microsoft revealed via Xbox Wire. Weekly average sales during the last two months of the year outpaced the Xbox 360 by 50 per cent at the same point in its lifecycle. Impressive.

But it’s not just Microsoft who should be breaking out the champagne. Sales of all consoles have increased by a decent amount compared to last year. According to NPD, annual sales for 2014 hit $5.07 billion, which is 20 per cent up on the $4.24 billion in 2013.

Hardware sales actually dropped a little in December, however, which is usually the biggest time of year. Sales were $1.31 billion, down from $1.37 billion in 2013.

Things aren’t so rosy on the software side either. Sales of software at retail channels was $5.30 billion in 2014, which is a drop of 13 per cent compared to 2013’s $6.11 billion.

Microsoft also boasted that games were selling well for its consoles. “Thanks to a strong, diverse portfolio of titles, Xbox One sold more games throughout November and December in the US than any other current-generation platform,” it said.